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Description
The multiphase interstellar medium (ISM) is highly structured, on scales from the size of the Solar System to that of a galaxy. In particular, small-scale structures are difficult to study and hence are poorly understood. We used the multiplex capabilities of the AAOmega spectrograph at the Anglo-Australian Telescope to create a half-square-degree map of the neutral and low-ionized ISM in front of the nearby (~5kpc), most massive Galactic globular cluster, {omega} Centauri. Its redshifted, metal-poor and hot horizontal branch stars probe the medium-strong CaII K and NaI D2 line absorption, and weak absorption in the {lambda}5780 and {lambda}5797 diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs), on scales around a parsec. The kinematical and thermodynamical picture emerging from these data is that we predominantly probe the warm neutral medium and weakly ionized medium of the Galactic Disc-Halo interface, ~0.3-1kpc above the mid-plane. A comparison with Spitzer Space Telescope 24um and DIRBE/IRAS maps of the warm and cold dust emission confirms that both NaI and CaII trace the overall column density of the warm neutral and weakly ionized medium. Clear signatures are seen of the depletion of calcium atoms from the gas phase into dust grains.
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